Bikers for Babies riders to roll through Saturday

Roughly 6,000 bikers made their way through the area for this past year’s March of Dimes Bikers for Babies fundraiser.

Similar numbers are expected this year as the 16th annual bikers for babies event rolls through Sunday.

Riders will depart from Kansas Speedway between 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. and make their way through Basehor, Tonganoxie, McLouth, Springdale, Easton, Winchester, Valley Falls, Ozawkie and Oskaloosa.

Local participants said they expect most bikers to come through Tonganoxie between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. Bikers will come west along U.S. Highway 24-40 and then head west to McLouth on Kansas Highway 16.

Drivers are asked to be cautious with so many bikers coming through town. Residents in communities where the bikers ride through have been known to stop along the route and wave to bikers, much like a parade.

The event supports local research related to premature birth and programs such as neonatal intensive care units and family support at Overland Park Regional Medical Center, Saint Luke’s Hospital and Stormont-Vail Regional Medical Center.